Okporoko is the highly sought-after fish which is largely consumed in Nigeria and is well known for its soft and juicy taste, it is so popular in Nigeria that it has different names in different tribes; the Igbos call it Okporoko, it is called Ekporoko in Calabar and the Yorubas call it Panla.
The real name of the stockfish or Okporoko is known as CODFISH, and it is usually found in Norway, and Norway is the country that has the largest production and marketing of this delicious fish and this is because of the country’s favourable weather conditions that are best suited for drying the fish.
Now we move on to how this fish is processed in Norway, according to cod.fromnorway.com here are the steps;
1. After the fish had been caught, it is gutted and then divided into two or the head is chopped off.
2. Then it is tied and hung on a large wooden A-frames which are about 10 metres in height, in open dry air for about two to three months which usually falls between February- May.
3. The weather condition and the dry wind which comes within February- May is very cold and the temperature can go as low as zero degrees, this condition prevents insects and bacteria growth inside the fish.
4. After that process is complete, about 80% of the water inside the fish is already dried up.
5. The next step is sorting, now this is where the grading experts come in and sort the fishes according to thickness, size, quality and aroma. After sorting it is then bagged and stored for shipping to various countries, the whole process of drying is called “hjell” in Norway, after this process the fish can last for several years before being delivered to different countries.
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